Blur vs Split Second Velocity

Which of these new racing games takes the chequered flag?

Common Topics

Graphics

More demands on a lap than Santa

Graphically, Blur is surprisingly bland for a Bizarre Creations' racer. The art design is poor, particularly so in the generic steel-glass buildings. Key landmarks aside, there isn't much track-side detail. The aesthetic favours the primary colours and shiny surfaces that blighted early 360 games, such as Perfect Dark Zero. And the pallid neons of its weaponry further drain tangibility from its world.

Although Split Second's rich palette seems initially cartoon-esque, it retains a feeling of real-world thanks to a higher polygon count. Given that practically all its objects are destructible, it's ironic that they feel weightier, more robust than those in Blur. It's this destructibility that proves Split Second's greatest graphical achievement. The animations and pyrotechnics of buildings toppling, car ferries exploding and aircraft crashing, to name just a few, look beautiful, and never cease to amaze.